Forgive me ...

... everyone ... for I have sinned - it's been over a month since my last blog post! That's just terrible!

I guess that life sometimes gets in the way of blogging, so, sorry about that. It's been a hectic month or so in the Bradford household - we've had a lot of illness, with poor little Liam having an ear infection, complicated by gastro, for 10 days, which wasn't pleasant. It's soooo nice to not be cleaning up spew anymore! Then, of course, Nick and I got a touch of the tummy bug too, so suffice to say that there were 2 weeks back at the start of June that I would just rather forget about.

Last weekend I had a lovely scrapping day at Sandy's house, a little get-together with Sandy, Lizzy and Alz, to celebrate Scrapchat's 1st Birthday! And, it was timed to perfection to coincide with a fantastic online class that Gypsy organised with THE Rhonna Farrer herself! It was such an honour to have Rhonna at Scrapchat, and she had prepared an absolutely stunning LO for the class as well. I haven't had a chance to choose my photos yet so I haven't started my LO, but I'm ready and raring to get to it this week, given that I've managed to clear a few things off my to-do list this week just passed. I've got a busy time ahead of me too, with a few extra jobs I've picked up around Scrapchat to help Gypsy out ... but at least it will keep my scrapping ticking over!

This weekend was also the cybercrop at The Stamp Shak forum, and I prepared the card challenge sample. I came up with the theme of 'Turning Points' for the cybercrop, and the layout challenges posted by Chelle and Gypsy were fabulous. The challenge I set was to make a sympathy card, and a few lovely examples have already been posted in the gallery, so thanks to those girls who have tried my challenge :)

Yesterday, I had a lovely lunch with Scrapmanda, who was down in Melbourne for a work function. It was lovely to catch up with her again :) We found a nifty little store on Glenferrie Road and Amanda picked up some lace and bits and pieces, and I got some very cute little organza flowers as well.

And today, the Bradford family (as well as the rest of Melbourne) finally got to try out the new Eastlink tollway, which is open as of today. Ashton was very excited to be able to drive on the roads that we've been watching being constructed for so long now ... and was so excited driving through the tunnels! I'm surprised as to how steep the tunnels are ... and how long ... but the road is nice, and it will make my special long-distance scrapping excursions down to Paper2 in Mornington much more do-able now :D And that's always a good thing!

Well, I'll post some pics so you can see a few of the things that I've been working on of late! Thanks for looking, thanks for reading my ramblings, and I'll talk to you soon.

Cheers,
Ness.


Here is my sample for the Sympathy card challenge -


And here is my take on Challenge 2 - about a turning point in your life, and the LO had to include a flower, a heart and a rubon. I'm really pleased with how this one turned out!


And he's one of my favourite pics of Ashton when he was younger ... he's only just started walking, and was so proud of himself! And he LOVES Dr Seuss books now, so it was the perfect quote :)


And this is one I did a month or so ago, and I didn't like it at all ... but it's been sitting to the side of my desk, and it's grown on me now! I drew the white line around the edge of the page, and I'm happy with it now. Funny how tastes can change!


Thanks for looking!

Some more of my latest ...

Hello everyone :D

Hope you're all having a lovely weekend so far! Well, the Stamp Shak CC is on this weekend, and I did samples for a couple of the challenges for the weekend.

Here's the card I did for the card sketch challenge - thanks to Pagemaps for the sketch!


Just LOVE the DCWV Far East papers - this one is "Fire Blossom".

Here's the LO I did for the Challenge I set using flowers .... LOTS of flowers ... and at least 3 different types of flowers (felt, PP, paper, ribbon, stamped etc.) to be used on the LO.


And here's the card I did for the Mosaic card challenge set by Lexie - great challenge Lex! I decided to do a masculine card ... normally do girly ones :D


I'm off to my LSS today as they're having a 20-40% off sale (who can resist THAT!), but might get some more scrapping time this afternoon.

Thanks for looking, and I'll talk to you soon!
Ness.

Some of my weekend's creations ...

Hello all :)

Here are a few pics of my creations from the Warana weekend. There's still a couple that need to have the journaling finished, but these ones are ready to show you now.

The first layout is for the Hands challenge set by ScrapManda.


This second layout was for the sketch challenge.


And here's my effort for the card sketch challenge.



I'm pretty happy with the end results here ... considering I only had a small amout of my stash on hand to play with! :)

I'll hopefully finish off the others soon so I can upload them as well.

Thanks for looking!

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

What an awesome weekend ...

Hi all -

Well, I'm back from my weekend away at Warana with the Scrapchat forum girls, and I had an absolute blast!! There were 18 of us staying in this fantastic house right on the beach, and it was amazing to be able to see so many talented scrappers in action.

It was terrific to see Gypsy again - she sure knows how to organise a great weekend! - and I finally had the chance to meet Heids (Miss Cropalot), Chelle, ScrapManda, Peggy (Patriciasmum), Lexie, Lynnie, Binrow, DeeBeeGee, Scrapwitch, Webbgod, Tiddlypeep, jbsmum, luv2cr8, Kim1980, Frangipani, and KarenG. (I don't think I've missed anyone out ...)

Here's the group shot so you can see everyone's face :D


I even managed to get some scrapping done! Although as I didn't have everything from my stash at the ready, they are probably slightly different to how I would normally do my LOs, and I did have to finish them off once I got home ... but, I'm still happy with the end result!

I got to see Scrapwitch in action, and she gave us a great little demonstration of her painting techniques ... I really need to learn to love paint more :D

It was a shame Ali couldn't make it up in the end - was looking forward to meeting her too - but hopefully I'll be able to head up to QLD again next year for the May retreat, and hopefully Ali can come along to that one.

I'll post up pics of my LOs once I've had a chance to photgraph them!

Oh, and I noticed last night that I had ticked over the 1000-visitor mark on my blog - thanks to everyone who pops along and has a little read :D

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

One more sleep ...

... and then I'm off to Warana in Queensland for the Scrapchat Retreat!! Oh yay - it seems like AGES ago that I threw caution to the wind and decided to go along to the Qld retreat ... got a great deal on flights, so just couldn't resist going along :D

I'm all packed - just the one (large-ish) suitcase full of scrapping supplies, oh, and a few clothes! Not many though ... scrapping and socialising will be the standing order for the weekend, so who needs fancy schmancy clothes? Trackies and PJs for me ... all the way!! It was so hard deciding what supplies to pack ... I have a multitude of patterned paper at my disposal here at home, and cutting it down to a handful of sheets (ok, well 1.5kg of paper - about 50 sheets!!) was a tough job! And don't START me on the cardstock :)

I've got a selection of embellies packed, and threw in my stamps, ribbons, all my flowers (couldn't leave them behind!), my rubons, chipboard, and the inks and H2Os as well ... some buttons, some bling, and it all rounds out at a nice even 20kg. Not bad, I reckon! I decided to leave most of my tools at home (they would only take up valuable scrap supply space!), as I figure with 17 other people at the retreat, if I don't take something, there will be another 17 there for me to borrow ...

I'm very much looking forward to seeing Gypsy again, and also meeting all the other girls - the lovely ScrapManda has very kindly offered to come collect me from the airport - thanks Manda :D

I'm looking forward to seeing the lovely Chelle in scrapping action ... to sampling from the slushie machine (thanks to Peggy), which I have heard so much about ... and also to hearing Lexie on the Singstar (not too shabby at all from what I hear!) ... and to going for a walk on the beach in the morning ... and to having just an all-round awesome time.

If I get one thing completed this weekend, I'll be happy .... :D

I'll post up some pics on my return!

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

Anniversary card ...

Here's a pic of the card I made for Nick last night.

The strip of grey PP is actually the 'roses' paper that I used on our wedding invitations all those years ago ... and Nick noticed it, too :D Gee he's good ...

Yes, I know, it's another piece done in red, white and black - but I just LOVE that combo :)

Thanks for looking!

Ok, brag time ...

Hi again :)

Just thought I'd let you know that one of my layouts has been voted as Layout of the Month (traditional) from the Scrapchat gallery from March/April, and as a result will be featured on the front page of the Scrapchat forum for the whole month of May!! Just scroll down to the very bottom of the front page, and you'll see it :)

What a surprise announcement this was! There were so many fabulous layouts uploaded during March and April, it was so hard to decide who I wanted to vote for ...

Yillup (Kylie) was voted as having done the best Digi layout for the March/April as well - congrats Kylie :)

Well, I've started getting ready for Warana today ... it's only 10 days away now I think, and I've got a few things I need to organise for various challenges etc. It's going to be so hard deciding what to pack and what to leave home. Thankfully, everyone else going seems to be taking so much stuff, I'm sure I'll have just about everything I could possibly need at my finger tips anyway LOL.

My poor little Liam has been sick with gastro since Sunday, and we had another bad night last night. He's currently asleep (in his OWN bed!!), so hopefully he'll stay there, and we'll all have a better night tonight. The spare bed's still set up, just in case he's unwell during the night again ...

And finally - Happy Anniversary to me!! It's my 8th wedding anniversary on Wednesday :D Gee time flies! I've made a nice little card (well I think it's nice :) ) for Nick, which I'll take a pic of tomorrow and upload for you to see ...

Hope you have all had a great week so far - talk to you soon!
Ness.

Just quickly ...

Here's a pic of the card I did last night for the May card sketch challenge at Scrapchat.

Nice 'n' simple .... :D

The lasercut chippie (which I love!) is from Remember When Paper Company.

I did it!!

Hi again :)

Well, finally, I have done it ... tonight, after much mojo-searching over the past week or so, I have completed my first round of the Use Your Stash challenge from Scrapchat! Phew!!

Gypsy posted her latest sketch challenges tonight, and the card sketch took my fancy, and so I've just completed my little effort. It's too late now to take a pic tonight I think, so I'll upload it tomorrow for you.

It was a hard challenge to complete ... I did end up receiving some of my pre-ordered stuff (that I had already deemed as admissable supplies :D), but didn't end up using that much of it during my challenge, so I don't even need to feel particularly guilty!

I'll have to think long and hard though before I decide to go in for another round of the challenge ... it's not as easy as it sounds ....

Well, the boys and I had a lovely day today - Mum and Dad were due home from their lovely little jaunt overseas, so I decided to take the boys to the airport to surprise them. Even now, at the ripe old age of 36, I still love going to the airport ... reminds me of all the fun holidays I've been on over the years and brings back lots of warm fuzzy feelings. And, the best thing is that I get to go back there in a few weeks time, but next time I'll actually be the one flying somewhere! Yes, the Warana retreat is now only about 16 days away, and I can't wait! Now to decide what to actually take with me ...

I'm off to my SILs tomorrow for a visit and to stock up on some more photos of Mia to scrap ... and I have to take my poor dog back to the chiropractor ... her back has stiffened right up again and she's in so much pain all the time. Doggy doctors aren't cheap, but I can't stand to see poor Zali in pain ....

Well, I hope everyone had a lovely long Anzac weekend, and managed to pause, even for a little while ,to remember what it's actually commemorating.

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

Want to win a tote??

Hi all -

Feel like winning a prize? (Who doesn't??)

Well, A Passion For Craft is having a raffle! Details are as follows:

One lucky shopper will be in the running to win a Jnr Tote from Crop In Style. It is valued at $90.00.

All you have to do is spend $30.00 (before postage) and you will get 2 tickets and go in the running to win. The more you spend the more tickets you get!

$30.00 buys 2 tickets
$50.00 buys 4 tickets
$70.00 and up buys 6tickets!

The winner will be drawn on the 31st of May! and will be notified by email and announced on the store front.



Happy shopping :D

I won a voucher!

Guess what??

I won a voucher from The Stamp Shak for winning Challenge 2 at their recent CC :D It was for the card I made (see previous post!).

I'm so chuffed - thanks to everyone that voted for my card!

And on another note, it's my last day at work tomorrow YAY! Well, in this current job anyway ... and what a way to celebrate - we're heading out tomorrow night to see Karnivool - one rocking band!

It's gonna be awesome ... I'll write again (probably with a slightly heavy head) on Friday and let you know how the gig was!

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

My latest card ...

Hi all -

Just thought I'd show you a card I whipped up last night - my version of Challenge 2 from the Stamp Shak CC ...

Card had to have only a raised stamped image, coloured pencils, an additional stamped image or sentiment, and kindy glitz. No patterned paper allowed!

Here's my contribution ...




I also have some wonderful news - I resigned from my job on Thursday! I've accepted another position where I can work only 2 full days a week, instead of all the half days and Saturdays ... it's very exciting - although it's never an easy discussion to have, even when you don't like where you're working! The boss was shocked to say the least ... I finish up next Thursday, and start in my new job on Friday the 2nd of May :D

Anyway, just a quick one from me today ...

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

Slight change to my blog set-up ...

Hi there ...

Just thought I should let you know that I have now changed my blog set-up, so that I have to approve comments before they are published.

I've had a few little spam nasties appearing as comments on my blog in the past couple of weeks, so I thought I'd try and cut them off at the pass, and now I authorise all comments (if they're not spam!) before they appear in the blog ...

So, please leave me a comment - who doesn't love getting feedback! - and I will authorise the comment as soon as I can :D

Thanks heaps, and I'll talk to you soon,
Ness.

I've been given permission ...

to upload the pic of the layout I did for the April Photo Swap at Scrapchat.

I did this layout for the lovely Susanlhl ... and I'm really pleased with the results! I get so nervous scrapping someone else's photos ... hope you like it - I'm so relieved that Susan does! :)

A couple of my latest pieces ...

Hello again -

Just thought I'd share with you a couple of my latest pieces - the layout is my interpretation for the April Sketch Challenge, and the cards are for the April Card Swap, both at Scrapchat.

I've also done a layout for the April Photo Swap, but I'm waiting on permission from my swap partner before I put the layout up on my blog :D


Sorry about the picture of the card, but I took it at night time, and forgot to take another pic in daylight before I packed them ready to post off ...


And here's another recent layout that I did as an example for the Allcraftz Cybercop back in March ...



And also a layout I completed as part of a class run by the beautiful Hannah at Allcraftz ...




Well we've had a lovely relaxing weekend ... Nick's been playing with his new 'toys' (TV and playstation - *rolls eyes*), and I've got some scrapping done (as you can see!).

And, after a lovely morning lying in bed listening to the rain, which doesn't happen very often any more in Melbourne, we had my friend Vicki and her daughter Emily (Ashton's girlfriend!) around for the afternoon, and then Kathryn and Justin came around with the kids as well - it was a full house here for a while, with 5 little tackers running around!

A quick fish and chips dinner was all I could come up with tonight, and now the boys are yet again racing eachother in Gran Turismo 5. But that's cool - more scrapping time for me :)

Well, I hope you all have a lovely week, and I'll talk to you soon,
Ness.

I need a bigger white board ....

Hello again !!

I'm sitting here lamenting buying such a small white board for my to do list ... because I keep signing up to swaps and challenges, and I'm rapidly running out of room to write everything down that I've committed to!

On top of my Babyjo bits and pieces, and the wedding invitations that I'm doing for our friends Greg and Brooke, I'm doing the Use Your Stash challenge over at Scrapchat (as you may already know from my previous ramblings), but I've also signed on for the April Photo Swap, and the April Card Swap!! I'm also making Mother's Day cards for Jess's stall at school, and there are Gratitude Journal pages that I'd like to have a go at, as well as some interesting challenges from the recent CC. And then there's the sketch challenges as well ... I'm going to need a bigger whiteboard for sure. If you're looking for some inspiration, or you're wanting to push yourself or step outside your scrapping comfort zone, there are heaps of interesting challenges being posted at Scrapchat all the time - well worth a looksie ...

I thought I should probably upload some pics of the chippie album I did recently too ... my first ever attempt at an album, so please be kind :) This was what my class was on over at Allcraftz last week ... a nice, simple, 'blokey' album. I'll put the pics at the end of my post if you want to check it out. Follow the links through to the forum there too, because the wondeful Megan is always listing fantastic sketch challenges as well :D

We've been out TV shopping today - Nick has been dreaming about a wide-screen LCD TV for a long time now ... and so far I have been successful in stopping all attempts to purchase one! But, with his long service leave having been paid out (he starts his new job on Monday), he's got money burning a hole in his pocket now, so I don't think I can hold him off much longer. I will admit though that the one he's got his eye on IS rather yummy :) I think it's only a matter of days, and we'll be the proud owners of a Sony Bravia X series ...

And finally, just a quick thank you to those that visit and read my ramblings ... I'm amazed that my little visit counter is constantly ticking over! I wonder what would happen if I actually started to write about something vaguely interesting LOL.

Hope everyone has a great weekend ...

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

It's class night ...

Well, the time has finally come for me to run my OTP class at Allcraftz tonight - and I have to say I'm really looking forward to it. It seems like ages ago that I actually created the album ... will be good to get the class (and the nerves!) over and done with. And alas, my time on the DT comes to an end on the 1st of April, so this is my last 'hurrah' so to speak :D I hope it all goes smoothly ...

And how's this for timing?? My hubby has just informed me that he's going to have drinks after work tonight, and will be later home than first thought. He has been duly warned that he will be shot on sight if this is the case .... :D

I've just realised that there's also not long to go until the Scrapchat Warana retreat will be upon us (mid-May), and I'm sooo looking forward to meeting all the girls IRL ... after chatting online for a year or so now, it will be fab to actually meet them!

After looking through my scrapping stash last night, I've taken a bit of a leap here, and decided to take part in the Use Your Stash challenge on Scrapchat too - I really should start using up some of the stuff I've got, especially paper, before I go buying much more. However, I am being realistic about it - I'm off to Paperific on Sunday with Vicki, and there's NO WAY I can really expect to walk out of there having not spent any money. So, my 'use your stash' attempt will commence as of Monday. Oh, and I should mention that cardstock and adhesives are excluded of course :D So too are the pre-orders that I currently have on the go, that will be shipping next week. They've already been paid for, so they're technically already part of my stash LOL.

Well, I'd better go and read over my class notes, so I can remember what I'm supposed to be teaching people! Wish me luck ...

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

E for Excellent!

Just a very quick post from me tonight to let you know that the lovely Gypsyangel has nominated me for an Excellent Blog Award :D

See - here it is!


Thanks so much to you Gypsy for your friendship and support - it means a great deal to me :D

And now, it's my turn to nominate someone, and I'm going to nominate the wonderful Bubblefrog! While she may not update her blog that regularly (but I'm guilty of that too!) Hannah's work is truly inspirational - she is one talented lady!

My latest offerings ...

Hello ... and sorry that it's been a couple of weeks since my last post ... things have been a little hectic in my neck of the woods of late.

But anyway, I've had a chance to get some scrapping done this past week, and thought you might like to see some of my latest offerings.


I hope everyone has a happy and safe Easter - and if you're heading away, please take care on the roads!

Talk to you soon,
Ness.

My class kit is now available!

Hi all -

The date for my first ever online class is rapidly approaching ... Friday March 28th!

And now, the class kit has finally been listed today for purchase on the Allcraftz website. Here 'tis, just in case you're interested :D

http://allcraftz.com.au/product_info.php?cPath=303&products_id=3973

Very much looking forward to running my first class ... and there are a few people interested in it too, so at least it looks like I won't be talking to myself all night! LOL

And, we have some wonderful news in the Bradford household - Nick has finally received the offer in writing for the job he has been applying for (actually, they approached him!), and he's signed it, so it's all official! He's resigned today, and starts his new job on the 7th of April.

It's just in Box Hill too ... so it's about a 15 minute drive from home - much better than the 1-1.5 hours he was travelling EACH WAY each day in his current job!

So, we're all very excited indeed ...

Talk to you soon!
Ness.